Riverside Drive by Bond No 9

[Schad]

I'm having a hard time deciding whether I like or dislike this fragrance. What are you thoughts on this one?

On one had, I want to like it because it's by Maurice Roucel, the genius who also made two of my favorites Musc Ravageur and New Haarlem.
The scent is very manly and distinct. Great warm weather scent IMO, perfect for this time of the year. It has excellent silage. But it has that basil opening that is a turnoff for me, and has a bit of an "mature" thing going on with the scent (almost like an 80's powerhouse effect....which is probably same quality that makes it feel manly to me).

On the fence about this one. I have a sample but chose not to buy a bottle when I tested it. Rarely has there been a fragrance that I like and not like equally as this one.

[KarlMaldensNose]

I felt similarly ambivalent about RD when I first tried it. I also found the basil opening a bit much. I actually found the entire composition kinda rotten -- I thought it was the basil and pineapple not mixing well and funking up the rest of it. But time and experience (with both RD and other frags) have changed my opinion on this one. I've since come to enjoy sharp "greenness" in fragrances, and also have identified the violet (which I really like) in the opening and learned to distinguish it from the basil. That said, I'm still working with my decant and don't like it enough to ever buy a full bottle, especially at Bond No. 9 prices. I agree with both the "mature" and '80s powerhouse assessments... good call. I'd also agree about it being good for this time of year, but certainly not for weather any warmer than typical spring temps. It's way too strong and loud for heat, in my opinion.

[The Chandos]

I'm having a hard time deciding whether I like or dislike this fragrance. What are you thoughts on this one?

There are THOUSANDS of fragrances out there. If you have to think this hard, just decide to not like it. It's so much easier that way. There is no room for mediocrity here, not when there are probably a dozen others that smell just like it at half the price.

[Obsessed]

My posts on Riverside Drive from March 29:


Bond No. 9 Riverside Drive

When I first put it on I thought that it was a "meh" generic modern aquatic-ish scent that was pleasant enough, but not worth the price. Now that I've had it on for a while, it's gotten much sweeter and less enjoyable to me, while still being generic. A definite no. Honestly, even if you like sweet scents, I can't see this stuff meriting the high price, but since I don't like sweet scents, I'm the wrong person to ask.


I'll say this, the longevity on this stuff is amazing. And after almost 14 hours, I finally noticed the pineapple, which was pretty nice. Not enough to salvage the scent, though.